Holmes appointed last Deputy Mayor for this Council term
Councillor Lisa Holmes was sworn in as Deputy Mayor Apr. 23 and is the last member of Council to be appointed to the position before the fall municipal election. Morinville Councillors have been appointed to the position through the past two-and-a-half years, each serving in the post for six months. Holmes’ appointment runs from Apr. 23 until Election Day, Oct. 21.
However, as the Local Election Authorities Act prohibits the Deputy Mayor position from ever being vacant, Deputy Mayor Holmes, if re-elected, would hold the position from the Oct. 21 election until the newly elected Council is sworn in Oct. 29.
In the event Deputy Mayor Holmes was not re-elected or did not run again, the position of Deputy Mayor would revert to the councillor who held the position immediately prior to Holmes so long as that councillor was re-elected Oct. 21. If not, the process would be repeated as far back in reverse order to the councillor who first held the position after the election in 2010 if necessary.
Council gets peek at functional plan presentation
Morinville Town Council had a sneak peek at the Highway 642 Functional Planning Study presentation Planning and Development will be making at the Morinville Community Cultural Centre Thursday night. Doors open at 7 p.m. and a formal presentation will take place at 7:15 p.m.
Councillor Nicole Boutestein, who sits on the functional study committee, thanked Consultant Project Manager Vicki Dodge for the presentation and the work that has been done on the project thus far. “The key message for everyone to understand is economic development,” Boutestein said, adding future economic development was a driving force behind the idea for the study. “It is what we are trying to promote in doing this.”
Councillor Sheldon Fingler said he wanted to make sure Planning Development was working with those businesses that would be affected by the inclusion of roundabouts in the downtown core, including the Morinville Shell, as the 107 Street and 100 Avenue intersection is likely to be the first to receive a roundabout if approved.
Councillor David Pattison, on behalf of a resident question, asked if there was another example of roundabouts being used in an urban setting through a downtown core. A consultant from Alterra Engineering said Ira Needles Boulevard in Kitchener Waterloo is similar in scope to what is being proposed for Morinville.
